good eats: OTTB edition

I've written a few times now about the slow (sloowwww) evolution of Charlie's nutrition plan. And I've always been pretty vague about the details bc I wanted to sort it out with the professionals in my world who know Charlie and our circumstances intimately.

But I think we're finally to a place of stasis. Managed maintenance - especially now that I'm 100% responsible for every aspect of Charlie's feed program outside of hay and grazing.

only the best for sir!

First some history: A month after bringing Charlie home, I wrote about how we had been taking it slowly with adjusting his diet.

He changed to a new feed after coming home to our previous h/j barn and letting down off the high octane track diet. A brief bout of colic his first week with us kept us conservative in shaking up his world. Plus, knowing he'd go through extreme adjustments and transformations, I sought to stagger the introduction of any supplements or treatments.

After about six months it felt like Charlie had plateaued. That he'd reached a point where he wasn't necessarily 'crashing' post track any more, but he also wasn't really rebounding either. He was thin and in a state that definitely would not be considered "thriving."

For example, the first picture in this post from March is one of my most favorite with Charlie bc it so perfectly captures my emotional state in taking him to our first event together. And yet.... It's hard for me to look at bc even now I'm so ashamed of his body condition.

legit the most recent pic i have of his full body lol

With the input of barn mgmt (who were surprisingly resistant to any change, #frustrating) and a vet, we decided to transition Charlie to the feed he remains on to this day: Nutrena Pro Force Fuel (12% protein, 10% fiber, 13% fat). This is supplemented by alfalfa pellets at every meal.

Following that feed switch, we slowly but surely began creating his supplement program - which included adding a gastric supplement U-Shield and a general wellness top dressing Cocosoya.

Those are both currently still part of Charlie's program. I like the U-Shield (calcium carbonate and magnesium oxide) since trailering is a normal part of Charlie's life (not lately tho!! wooo!!!). Not sure I'll refill the Cocosoya once it's empty, honestly.

Platinum Performance Equine

The rest of Charlie's current supplement regimen is actually pretty simple - mostly bc damn, it's f*ing expensive. Charlie's body carries the baggage of a lengthy career on the track. And his feet are exactly what you would expect in a size giant OTTB.

Therefore I've relied heavily on the professionals in my world to give me the straight poop on what's worth investing in supplement-wise. Trainer P told me early on: She's a big believer in Platinum Performance in horses, and many of those same ingredients in people. She credits this specific supplement in particular with the recovery and wellness of a few horses in her life. Charlie's vet and farrier added their votes of confidence as well.

Charlie has been on this supplement since January - starting with a lengthy period on the loading dose, tho now he's on the maintenance dose (1/2cup daily). The introduction of Platinum Performance into Charlie's diet coincided with the point at which he came reliably sound, after months of intermittent body and hoof soreness.

Farrier's Formula by Life Data Labs

That was all well and fine for a while - right up until Charlie started walking out of his shoes earlier this summer. My farrier explicitly said he preferred Platinum Performance to Farrier's Formula... But we all know that old adage: ask two horse people, get three answers.

I have known many, many success stories with Farrier's Formula - and clearly if I want to avoid dealing with 2.5wk shoeing cycles next summer, I should probably be working on building out that new hoof now.

So Charlie started the loading dose of Farrier's Formula in June. And damn but he eats a lot of this stuff (1 1/3cups daily). I order it 44lbs at a time. Sheesh. The idea here is that this is very much a long game supplement - it's affecting the new hoof at the point of growth. Already tho (and I really hope this is not my mind playing tricks on me), I'm liking the look of Charlie's hoof as it grows out. And in the meantime, there's always Keratex.....

Farmnam Apple Elite Electrolytes

For the sake of completeness, the final ingredient in Charlie's current supp baggies is an electrolyte. I chose the first one on Amazon that looked vaguely familiar and reasonably priced.

Our last barn simply included e-lytes free of charge for all horses on the property, so I felt compelled to add it to Charlie's regimen after the move for the rest of summer. He's a great sweater and it's hot and muggy here. The stuff is cheap too. Good 'nuff reasoning for me.

the whole mixture is the size of my hand

I had to adjust the dosages and balance of all of Charlie's supplements after the move since the new place strongly encourages pre-measured packs or baggies rather than measuring out themselves. Therefore it behooved me to have interchangeable AM and PM supp bags.

So all of the above (plus the squirts of U-Shield and Cocosoya) are split between morning and evening feeds of Fuel and alfalfa pellets, soaked and fed on the ground naturally bc #specialsnowflake #tiebacksurgery #helikestoplaywithhisfoodokay

he gets a baggie at each meal, so twice a day

And christ it's a lot of food. The new barn has one specific type of feed that it'll provide with board - some sweet feed variation that's totally reasonable but also not really what Charlie needs. So now I'm ordering my own feed tacked on to the barn's standing weekly shipment.

Still haven't really figured out the exactly optimum delivery schedule for Charlie's Fuel (he eats approx 85% of a 50lb bag each week and I have enough space for two bags), and am just kinda ordering the alfalfa as needed (typically a bag every 4ish weeks). It's a lot tho!

unlimited snax 4eva tho bc #spoiled

It's also meant that I could increase his feed on my own terms with the move, which was nice. We were basically at the limit of what my last barn wanted to feed Charlie anyway (and not even bc they wanted to charge me extra, obvi I would have paid) but it still felt a little insufficient.

obvi he could have nothing less while still being expected to work under such rainy circumstances!

In fact, at the last place I would often supplement Charlie's diet with an extra beet pulp pellet mash on days when I rode. That's gone a bit by the wayside at the new place, just bc of how the feed schedule plays out with my time at the barn - I'd be basically adding a third meal right on top of his second, instead of spreading them out more. So not quite ideal.

like crossing "streams" -- tis hard work!!

Plus Charlie's new pasture situation might actually be a little bit better. He was on a GIANT pasture at the last place but it never seemed to get much rest and the grass was thin in places.

And it's worth noting here: the #1 difference maker all along in Charlie's physical condition has been access to grass. Not even hay - we threw all the hay in the world at him. Hay is good. It's super important. I continue to throw extra flakes at him whenever possible. But grasssss, man. That's the good stuff apparently!

(even if the wet dew and sugars from grass have wreaked havoc on his feetsies, wtf nature why can't we ever just have one solid win with horses ever, c'mon!)

naturally the broad grassy pasture on the other side of those trees helps too
of course charlie doesn't gallop off up the hill after turnout. no, no - sir must sniff the roses poop on his way out!

So all that to say: Charlie's diet has changed slowly but substantially during his year with me. As has his physical condition. I'm of the opinion that the two are related. Tho, as is always the case, it's possible that some of the changes in his condition would have occurred with or without my interference or supplementation.

I'm pleased with his current condition tho. He lost a little weight with the move, but appears to be making that ground right back up again. His muscling isn't fantastic right now, but again that can be attributed to some inconsistencies over the past month bc if nothing else, OTTBs reflect work in real time haha. Seems tho like his nutrition is finally balanced enough that he's able to build up the muscle in pace with his work load.

It's been interesting for me to actually dig in and educate myself about all this stuff. Lots of trial and error. Lots of observing how other people (including all you!) handle the horses. And lots of general research. Who knew it could be so complicated?! While also being so simple! lol...

I know LOTS of you have taken horses through similar transformations - did your process look similar? Or actually quite different? Maybe your horse was more particular about tastes, or had pressing health issues requiring more purposeful care or treatment? Or maybe you're blessed with one of those horses that thrives on abject neglect??? (Isabel sometimes I miss you!! lol...)